Stoppers



Jan. 19, 1960 MARCEL STOPPERS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed NOV. 23. 1953 l n venlor l /ENR/ MAR FL B l W W H. MARCEL Jan. 19, 1960 STOPPERS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed NOV. 25. 1953 Inventor HENRI M/IACA'L By WW ymgm M A ttorn e y United States Patent STOPBERS Henri Marcel, Lyon, France Application November 23, 1953, Serial No. 393,875

Claims priority, application France November 24, 1952 3 Claims. (Cl. 215-48) This invention relates to stoppers for bottles and similar containers, and more especially to such stoppers made of resilient and elastic synthetic plastic materials, particularly polyethylene.

It has been suggested to close bottles and the like with stoppers made of such plastic materials which are hollow and have relatively thin elastic walls. These stoppers have the disadvantage that their diameter must correspond exactly to the diameter of the neck of the bottle; if they are forced into too'small a neck, they tend to form longitudinal creases which prevent an airtight seal. Further they do notwithstand a largepressure inside the bottle and tend to be forced out by the internal pressure, e.g. as produced by carbon dioxide.

The stoppers of this invention avoid these disadvantages, affording a much tighter and stronger seal and allowing a larger tolerance with respect to the diameters of the stopper and the bottle-neck. They offer further advantages as will be pointed out as this specification proceeds.

In its simplest form the stopper of the invention consists of a hollow cylindrical body of polyethylene, said body having a thin wall and being closed at the top and tapering towards the other end, the outer surface of the body having a plurality of circular ribs moulded therearound which have been found to prevent creasing in the thin wall of the stopper. Preferably the stopper is further provided with a head which mayor may not be integral with the body of the stopper. In the latter case special means may be provided to fix easily but firmly the head to the body of the stopper, and by making the head of transparent material a thin sheet or foil of material bearing inscriptions, pictures or the like may be inserted between the head and the upper part of the body of the stopper. Instead of closing the hollow cylindrical body at the top, the closing element may be provided at the opposite tapering bottom end of the body.

Moreover, these circular ribs eliminate capillary creep of liquids and provide an effective seal against increase of vapour pressure.

In order to make the invention more readily understood, some embodiments of same are described in connection with the attached drawings, by way of example only.

Fig. I shows a cross-section of a stopper without a head.

Fig. II shows a cross-section of a stopper with an integral head.

Fig. III shows a cross-section of another stopper with an integral head.

Fig. IV shows a side-view of another stopper with an integral head.

Fig. V shows a cross-section of the stopper of Fig. IV.

Fig. VI shows a diagrammatic. view of a stopper with a separate attached head.

Fig. VII shows a cross-section of the stopper of Fig. VI.

protected by the transparent head.

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Fig. VIII shows a cross-section of the head of a stopper according to Fig. VII. f t

Fig. IX shows a piece of sheet material to be inserted between the head and the body of a stopper according to Fig. VI.

Fig. X shows a cross-section of a body of a stopper according to Fig. VI.

Fig. XI shows a diagrammatic view of a similar stopper as used primarily for bottling sparkling wine.

The stopper shown in Fig. I consists of a hollow cylindrical body 1 moulded of polyethylene having circular ribs 4 separated by grooves 5. This cylinder is closed at the upper end 7 and tapers towards the lower end as shown at 1d.

The stopper shown in Fig. II differs from that of Fig. I in that the upper part 7 of Fig. I protrudes over the rim of the bottle-neck thus forming a head 2 integral with the body.

The stopper shown in Fig. III differs from that of Fig. II in the form of the head.

The stopper shown in Figs. IV and V shows the cylindrical hollow body 1 with the ribs 4 and the grooves 5 and the head 2. Contrary to the formerly-shown stoppers the stopper is closed by a cone-shaped part 3 at the lower tapering end 10'.

The angle of this cone may be, for instance, about By inserting this stopper into the neck 6 of a bottle, the cone 3 is compressed lengthwise, the top rising up and the angle decreasing, thereby pressing the tapering end of the body towards the bottle-neck.

The stopper shown in Figs. VI-X consists of the cylindn'cal hollow body 1 of polyethylene with ribs 1b and grooves 5 and the tapering end 1d, and a separate head 2 which is serrated or fluted as shown at 2a for affording a firm grip. In the body above the ribs, grooves or cavities 2e are provided for receiving projections 2c provided on the internal surface 2b of the head 2 as shown in Fig. VIII. These projections are saw-tooth shaped having a steeply bevelled lower surface and a horizontal upper surface. Due to the elasticity of the body 1, the projections 20 will engage, if pressed down, the cavities 2e but will strongly resist separation of the head from the body if pulled upwards. The head may be made in all cases of any rigid material suitable for the purpose. But it is preferable to use a transparent material in which case a thin sheet 9 (Fig. IX) inserted before connecting the head 2 to the body 1 by means of the projections 20 and the cavities 2e will be held firmly between these two parts and will be visible from above. .This sheet, which may be of any desired mate rial, may be printed or decorated as desired and will be Instead of using a separate sheet, the upper closing part 1a of the body may be printed or decorated.

The stopper can also, as shown in Fig. XI, be composed of a body and a head which consists of several parts, namely a part 2 of rigid material, and a domeshaped part 2d of soft elastic material which, combined, form a stopper as used for bottling sparkling wine, etc. 2f are grooves for locating the usual retaining wires for champagne stoppers.

The above described stopper in all its forms is readily applied to bottles, jars, and other containers by ordinary mechanical means.

What I claim, is:

1. A stopper for fitting into the neck of a bottle or jar, comprising a hollow cylindrical body moulded of polyethylene, said body having a thin cylindrical wall and the outer surface of the cylindrical wall having a V plurality of circular reinforcing ribs moulded therearound which prevent longitudinal creases occurring in the thin wall of the body when the stopper is inserted into the neck of a bottle or jar,'integral end wall closing the upper end of said cylindrical body, a head member separate from the body and made of a rigid transparent material with a cylindrical cavity on its underside 77 adapted to receive the upper end of the body, means securingthe head to thebody, and a sheet of material secured between the end wall of the body and the head and visible throughthe overlying transparent portion of the head.

2. A stopper comprising a hollow cylindrical body "composed of an elastic resilient synthetic plastic material and closed at its upper end, ahead composed of transparent material formed separately from the body and adapted to fit over the closed end thereof, and means for securing the head and body together inseparably,

a sheet of material interposed between the head and the closed end of the body and bearing indicia visible through the transparent head.

areas of the thin wall of the body therebetween, an 7 integral end wall closing the upper end of said cylindrical wall, the lower end thereof being open, a head member separate from the body and made of a rigid transparent material with a cylindrical cavity on its underside receiving the closed upper end of the body, and projections in the internal surface of the side walls of said cavity in the head engaging in at least one recess in the body adjacent the closed upper end to secure the head to the body, said projections being saw-tooth like in shape with tapering lower surfaces which interlock with at least one recess in the resilient body to prevent separation and a sheet of material indicia secured be tween the end wall of the body and the head and visible through the overlying transparent portion of the head.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 494,361 Bonwick Mar. 28, 1893 1,340,237 Moore May 18, 1920 1,817,218 Villanyi Aug. 4, 1931 2,196,785 Takiguchi Apr. 9, 1940 2,526,225 Gronerneyer et a1 Oct. 17, 1950 2,526,622 Martin Oct. 24, 1950 2,549,404 Williams Apr. 17, 1951 2,669,370 Royall Feb. 16, 1954 2,670,869 Martin Mar. 2, 1954 FOREIGN PATENTS 74,927 Switzerland May 1, 1917 1947 928,158 France May 26, 

